Former Mount Pleasant city manager indicted for making false record

Former Mount Pleasant city manager indicted for making false recordMOUNT PLEASANT– Our news partner, KETK, reports that Former Mount Pleasant City Manager Ed Thatcher was indicted by a Titus County Grand Jury on Wednesday after he allegedly made a false entry in a government record.

Thatcher served as the Mount Pleasant’s city manager from 2019 until he resigned last May. An indictment alleges that on May 7, 2022, Thatcher made a false travel request form that said former city council member Tim Dale had driven 870 miles around the county for council purposes and was requesting reimbursement.

A Mount Pleasant city employee released this statement:
“On Jan. 15, 2025, the City of Mount Pleasant was made aware that former City Manager, Ed Thatcher, was indicted by a Titus County grand jury for making a false entry in a governmental record. The indictment stems from an investigation by the Texas Rangers into travel reimbursements issued to city council members. Mr. Thatcher served as city manager from 2019 until his resignation in May 2024. During the investigation of this matter, the City fully cooperated with the Texas Rangers. As this is an ongoing legal matter, the City cannot further comment at this time. Any questions regarding this matter should be directed to the Titus County District Attorney’s Office.” Continue reading Former Mount Pleasant city manager indicted for making false record

Three rescued from house fire in Marshall

MARSHALL – Three rescued from house fire in MarshallThe Marshall Fire Department responded to a residential structure fire at approximately 5:00 AM on January 15th in the 2200 block of Pinecrest Drive, successfully rescuing three occupants including a 22-month-old infant. Upon arrival, firefighters found a single-story wood frame house with flames visible from the front windows and heavy smoke throughout the structure. Marshall Police Department officers, who arrived first, had already removed a double window after hearing screams from inside. Fire Department crews immediately initiated rescue operations and located an unconscious 23-year-old female trapped under a fallen dresser. The victim was quickly rescued and taken to emergency medical personnel. The homeowner had safely evacuated through a bedroom door prior to firefighters’ arrival and told crews that a 22-month-old infant remained inside. Fire crews conducted an extensive search and located the infant in a void space between furniture in another bedroom. Both the 23-year-old victim and infant were taken to Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center – Marshall for treatment. Continue reading Three rescued from house fire in Marshall

Texans On Mission helping California recover from wildfires

Texans On Mission helping California recover from wildfiresTYLER– Our news partner, KETK, reports that Texans On Mission has boots on the ground in fire ravaged southern California. In times of crisis, the nonprofit tries to be there when people need their help the most. Right now, their focus is on the devastating wildfires that have ravaged parts of California. Four volunteers returned from California on Wednesday, and 10 to 12 volunteers left Wednesday morning to bring laundry and shower trailers. Rand Jenkins, Texans on Mission chief strategic officer, has been out west for days getting a first hand look at the damage on the frontlines.

“The first emotion is just that heaviness that even once we got here, we saw and could experience, it’s not out yet and so people are still kind of wondering what is next,” Jenkins said. “What we did the past few days is being with churches and beginning to build their capacity for wrapping their arms around their community from a distribution standpoint, from a management standpoint.” Continue reading Texans On Mission helping California recover from wildfires

CHRISTUS Health breaks ground on new Cancer Center in Longview

CHRISTUS Health breaks ground on new Cancer Center in LongviewLONGVIEW– According to our news partner, KETK, on Wednesday, CHRISTUS Health broke ground on a new $36 million Cancer Center in Longview. Construction begins soon and should be finished by the fall of 2026. There’s one goal in mind for the state-of-the-art, 35-thousand-square-foot facility.

“We are going to reduce the incidence of cancer in northeast Texas and we’re going to improve mortality rates,” CHRISTUS Trinity Clinic physician vice president of operations John DiPasquale said. In 2024, across the United States, an estimated two million new cancer cases were reported. Nearly one hundred and fifty thousand of them here in Texas. The American Cancer Society reports that a new clinic of this type will provide access to treatment at home, reducing the financial burden of traveling to larger cities for care. Continue reading CHRISTUS Health breaks ground on new Cancer Center in Longview

Rudy’s BBQ restaurant catches fire

Rudy’s BBQ restaurant catches fireTYLER — Our news partner KETK reports that Tyler Fire Department responded to a popular barbecue restaurant on Sunday night after it caught on fire. at around 10:30 p.m., Tyler firefighters were dispatched to the scene on 1410 SSW Loop 323 at Rudy’s “Country Store” and Bar-B-Q. When units arrived to the scene, they found the restaurant in flames. The firefighters were on scene for approximately 40 minutes extinguishing the fire, however Tyler officials said no one was injured.

The possible cause of the fire, officials said, was discarded ash and amber from cooking meat had accidently fallen over and caught a wall on fire.

Tyler Fire said that Rudy’s is already working to reopen.

Arrest made after shots fired at Amtrak station

Arrest made after shots fired at  Amtrak stationLONGVIEW – The Longview Police Department said an arrest has been made after multiple shots were fired at a Longview Amtrak station on Wednesday Afternoon. Longview Public Information Officer La’Darian Brown said that a man walked into the Amtrak station and fired multiple shots. It is unclear to Brown what caused the suspect to open fire. Longview PD has not identified the suspect at this time.

Brown confirmed that nobody inside the building was harmed. The suspect fled however officers were able to detain him, and he has since been arrested.

Hawkins police chief resigns, marking third chief in three years

Hawkins police chief resigns, marking third chief in three yearsHAWKINS — Hawkins Police Chief Paul Holland has resigned, according to a member of the Hawkins Police Department and our news partner KETK.

This marks the third chief to resign at the police department in recent years. A member of the police department told KETK News over the phone that Holland stepped on Tuesday. Holland was appointed to the position back in June of 2024. Back in March 2024, the Hawkins City Council accepted the resignation of Chief of Police Guy McKee. In 2022, Manfred Gilow also resigned as chief of police. KETK spoke to Gilow back in 2022, who cited budget issues and a shortage of police staff as reasons that led to his resignation.

“The fact that we are understaffed in this police department. I have two openings in the last seven months. We cannot fill them. Nobody wants to do this job anymore and sure enough, not for 15-16 dollars an hour. Target has 25-dollar minimum wage,” Gilow said back in 2022. “Therefore, I think right now, it’s a time to make a decision.”

Man sentenced after brutally killing wife with axe

Man sentenced after brutally killing wife with axeUPSHUR COUNTY — An East Texas man has plead guilty to murdering his wife with an axe. The Upshur County Criminal District Attorney’s Office said a Gilmer citizen called 911 to report a man attempting to get into their vehicle on Feb. 26, 2024 at around 1:43 a.m. Police were on the scene within two minutes of the call and located the suspect. The suspect “was soaking wet on the front of his clothes and dry on the back.”

When officers questioned who he was, he reportedly lied before telling them his real name, Craig Allen Smith, and admitted to lying. He told officers he did not want to reveal his identity because “his wife was dead and he did not want to get caught up in it.” According to our news partner KETK, Smith reportedly told police his wife had been dead for a few hours and that she was at a home on Walnut Street in Gilmer. He was booked into the Upshur County Jail for an outstanding warrant. Continue reading Man sentenced after brutally killing wife with axe

Tyler and Smith County offices closed for MLK Day

SMITH COUNTY – Tyler and Smith County offices closed for MLK DayAll non-emergency Smith County offices will be closed for business on Monday, January 20, 2025, for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Offices will reopen for normal business hours on Tuesday, January 21, and Commissioners Court will be held at its normal time, at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday in the Smith County Annex Building, located at 200 E. Ferguson St. in Tyler. City offices will observe the following schedule on Monday, Jan. 20 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Continue reading Tyler and Smith County offices closed for MLK Day

Austin real estate developer Nate Paul pleads guilty

AUSTIN – KXAN reports that real estate developer Nate Paul agreed to plead guilty Wednesday to one charge of making false statements to a lending institution. The plea ends his 18-month federal bank and wire fraud case related to his work as head of World Class, according to court proceedings.

The government recommended no more than six months in prison, five years additional years of supervised release and a maximum $1 million fine. The sentence is not yet set.

The case is being sent to the US Probation Office for a pre-sentencing evaluation. If the plea deal is accepted, the sentence is capped at 6 months. The remaining 11 counts against Paul will be dismissed, according to U.S. Magistrate Judge Dustin Howell, who oversaw the plea.

Paul is allowed to remain out of custody, and the plea agreement remains sealed.

Paul potentially faced decades in prison, and his jury trial was set to begin Feb. 18.

Federal authorities first indicted Paul in June 2023 on eight counts of bank fraud. He was accused of making false statements to lenders to obtain over $172 million in loans. In November that year, prosecutors added four additional wire fraud charges in a superseding indictment.

For each of the eight bank fraud counts, Paul faced up 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The four wire fraud counts each carried a maximum 20 years in prison and $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The plea agreement ends the uncertainty surrounding Paul’s legal troubles, and it underscores his fall from the top of Austin’s commercial real estate scene – where the 37-year-old was a powerhouse with numerous multi-million-dollar properties peppered across town.

Paul was the chief of World Class Holdings, a company with myriad sub-businesses and, at one point, over $1 billion in assets across 17 states, according to a Forbes report.

Cracks in Paul’s real estate empire became visible after a 2019 FBI raid on his home and business headquarters. Many of his World Class companies have since filed for bankruptcy. Paul also became entangled in allegations of abuse of office against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Who is Nate Paul — the Austin real estate investor charged with 8 federal counts

The plea agreement announced Wednesday comes days after Senior U.S. District Judge David Ezra denied a motion for continuance sought jointly by the defense and prosecutors to push the trial date from mid-February to mid-April. At a Jan. 8 hearing, Ezra said the case had “gone on way too long,” and both sides had enough time to prepare for a February trial.

Also at the Jan. 8 hearing, a court clerk said both the defense and government were “simultaneously talking about a plea agreement.” That was the first public mention of a possible plea deal. One of Paul’s attorneys previously told KXAN they were taking the case to trial, and Paul hired a team of top-flight defense attorneys, including several from Washington D.C. based firm Williams & Connolly.

The plea agreement spares Paul from a trial that would have stretched several weeks. The government notified the court in January it expected its portion of the trial to take 10 to 14 days – not including the defense’s case and rebuttal.
Paxton connection

Separate from the federal case, Paul was ordered to serve a 10-day jail sentence in November for contempt of court for perjury and violating an injunction in a civil lawsuit against a charity, according to records from Travis County District Court, where the case was being handled.

That civil case linked Paul to allegations against Paxton for disregarding his official duty by using his office to assist Paul in the lawsuit. Paxton was impeached over that allegation, among others, including misusing his power to have legal opinions written to help Paul avoid foreclosures and by obtaining previously undisclosed information to assist Paul, according to the articles of impeachment.

Paxton was ultimately acquitted on all the counts against him in a State Senate trial in 2023.

BBB reports Texans lost $10M to fraud in 2024

AUSTIN – KXAN reports that the Better Business Bureau reported on Monday it analyzed over 6,000 “BBB scam tracker” reports by Texans throughout 2024, according to a BBB press release. The analysis revealed Texans reported losing over $10 million to fraud, setting an all-time high since the “BBB scam tracker” was created in 2014. The BBB said that one-third of reports included an average loss of $150, a slightly higher average loss than in 2023.

Consumers between 45 years old and 54 years old were among those that reported the highest total losses at 2.8 million. Right behind that age group were consumers between 55 years old and 64 years old at 2.7 million lost, according to the press release. “Over the past few years, our data is showing a sharp increase in scam activity resulting in millions of dollars being lost,” said Heather Massey, vice president of communications and community relations at Better Business Bureau serving the Heart of Texas. “In just two years, scam reports have doubled, and losses have increased by more than 430 percent.” The BBB revealed the top five fraudulent reports that impacted Texans in 2024. Investment and cryptocurrency fraudulent reports were the costliest for Texans in 2024, the total loss was $3.1 million, according to the nonprofit organization.

Longview ISD teacher arrested for sexual assault of child

Longview ISD teacher arrested for sexual assault of childLONGVIEW  — Longview Police arrested a 25-year-old Longview ISD employee on Tuesday for sexual assault of a child. The police department said officers were dispatched to a residence on Saturday at around 3:49 p.m. in reference to a sexual assault. According to our news partner KETK, officials said during the course of the investigation, officers learned that a 15-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by D’Marjai Dearion, of Longview.

On Tuesday, Longview detectives obtained a warrant and Darion was arrested the same day for sexual assault of a child. He is being held on a $150,000 bond at the Gregg County Jail.

Longview ISD said Dearion was employed as a physical education teacher and coach since August 2023. He served at Judson Middle School during the 2023-2024 school year and at East Texas Montessori Prep Academy and Forest Park Middle School during the 2024–2025 school year. Continue reading Longview ISD teacher arrested for sexual assault of child

Former hospital CEO headed to prison

TYLER – Former hospital CEO headed to prisonA former Texas hospital chief executive officer has been sentenced to 36 months in federal prison for conspiring to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute, announced U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs. Jeffrey Paul Madison, 49, of Burnet, Texas; Susan L. Hertzberg, 66, of New York, New York; Matthew John Theiler, 58, of Pinehurst, North Carolina; David Weldon Kraus, 66, of Maryville, Tennessee; and Thomas Gray Hardaway, 52, of San Antonio, Texas, were found guilty by a jury on November 30, 2023, following a seven-week-long trial before U.S. District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle. Madison was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison by Judge Kernodle on January 15, 2025. Madison also agreed to pay $5,343,630 to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act involving illegal payments to physicians for laboratory referrals in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute. Continue reading Former hospital CEO headed to prison